24-year-old Meredith Emerson, the Georgia hiker murdered in January by disturbed drifter Gary Michael Hilton, fought to the very end, according to authorities. Emerson was hiking alone with her dog when Hilton, 61, first tried to attack her with a knife, and Emerson grabbed it from him and attempted to use her martial arts training to quell him. Georgia Bureau of Investigation agent Clay Bridges tells the AP, "The one thing that broke my heart in this case... [is] she was doing everything she was supposed to do to stay alive, and we didn't get there in time." Hilton was sentenced to life in prison with a possibility of parole in 30 years. Prosecutors were not allowed to seek the death penalty in this case, as Hilton only agreed to show investigators where Emerson's body was buried if they waived the death penalty as an option. [MSNBC]

The body of Meredith Emerson, the Georgia hiker who went missing on New Year's Day, has been…
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